Search form

album reviews

I see your eyes going wide. “Jimmy Eat World!” you’re yelling. “Good gravy, man! Are you mad?!” Quite possibly, yes. Though I maintain that has little to do with this review.

When I was sent “Invented” for review, at first, I sneered. I had the option to turn it down, and my gut reaction was that I would. And yet, here we all are now, sharing this together as I write it and you read it. What on the good earth might have possessed me to go forward with the review? I’m glad you asked (if you didn’t ask, please humor me and pretend you did.)

Sully Erna's solo album "Avalon" seems to serve two purposes. First, he finally gets to explore his fascination with tribal drums and acoustic music to his heart's content, without the weight of the Godsmack name and subsequent label expectations. Second, he created a vehicle which allows him to create all the songs about longing and soul-searching emotional torment that it seems he's been brimming with since his band's eponymous album.

There are a certain number of things that must be said in regard to Serj's album, and they relate to both the man and the music. He possesses a nearly flawless sense of the dramatic. Sometimes teetering on the precipice of melodrama, Tankian has an innate talent for crafting music of grand context. This album, not unlike any of his solo adventures, would be well adapted for stage, complete with larger-than-life characters, exotic sets and resplendent costumes.

Holy crap, the Toadies! Remember them? I do. I don't think it's too heavy an exaggeration to proclaim that I am the only person in the Western Hemisphere who owns all of the Toadies' albums besides the band's own mothers. I can't really defend that, nor can I put my finger on why I find them such an enjoyable band, especially considering that I probably listen to them only four or five times a year.

Somehow, even after all the years of latent dormancy, three of the four original members of Autopsy can come back together and still rock it. It must be like riding a bike, as this incarnation of the long-thought-to-be-dead gore metal classic hasn't really missed a step relative to their other works.

American Bang is a raw band with a developing sound. So it will be interesting to see what happens with their career path since the band’s producer is none other than legend/scourge Bob Rock. Sometimes lauded as a rock and roll genius, and sometimes referred to with less positive sentiment as the Man Who Ruined Metallica, Bob Rock evidently saw American Bang perform live and was instantly smitten. With a new heavy-hitting producer in tow, American Bang presented the world with their eponymous debut.

Disturbed always leaves me in a strange place as a metal fan. The selfish, select, protective metal fan in me wants to write them off as another example of metal overproduction; a band that some record label wants me to like. Conversely, the honest music fan in me can’t help but admit that they have written a whole bunch of incredibly catchy songs.

As a side note, someone whispered to me that Disturbed will be talking with fans on Ustream about the album on release date, which is Tuesday the 31st (5:30 PM EST.) So if you're a fan, scope that out for yourself.

I don't get to hear albums like this very often. Furthermore, I don't know that I would ever go out of my eye to hear one. Still, whenever something like this crosses my desk, I always take a minute to enjoy it for its pure destructive potential and crack a smile at how simple it all can be.

I find that I like the idea of Hell Within. It seems like they’re built in the same mold as Unearth; a Massachusetts-built strong brand of new age metalcore with flying guitar solos that is coupled with a forceful but unfocused vocal performance. The problem is that the cohesiveness of the band isn't quite there. "God Grant Me Vengeance" has a feeling in parts that each individual musician is playing his line in the proper context, but it’s all so raw and unfiltered as to get snarled up in itself.